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There's something about putting up Christmas lights that can bring up feelings of nostalgia. The same way Halloween doesn't feel complete without a pumpkin carving, and Thanksgiving isn't Thanksgiving until you trace your hand on a piece of paper and call it a turkey, Christmas lights complete the holiday spirit in December. They look pretty and give your environs a beautiful, warm glow. But even more than that, they symbolize the beauty of the holiday season every year.
The Christmas light show at Callaway Gardens has been rated in the top 10 of US Christmas light displays by National Geographic (and who knew that they even did that?) But it is NOT why we came to Callaway Gardens. This year, COVID-19 has severely restricted our annual anniversary trip---and we are okay with that, because, let's face it , we are both ALIVE, employed, doing well and last but not least TOGETHER to celebrate anniversary #9 in about 1 day hence. So we aren't complaining. But the impetus for this visit is rooted in travel restrictions and a childhood memory for me of FDR's Little White House (see prior blog post) and a visit I made to Callaway Garden as a teen with all the gardens in bloom and a water ski show on the lake. Not exactly what we saw, but...
We arrived and stayed at the Lodge which is pretty much a nice hotel room with a larger than average bath. The grounds are not really a flowering paradise in December, but who thought they would be. They have been decorated with all these lights which are absolutely impressive, if a bit of a Cade's Cove type follow-the-bumper-of-the-car-ahead-affair. But pretty, for sure! But we did highly enjoy our 9+ mile walk around the entire complex on hiking trails/bike trails. We also enjoyed a nice visit to the butterfly center. Who doesn't love butterflies?
Photographing them is a challenge though! Like birds they are alway flitting branch to branch, bush to bush. But beautiful!
We managed to walk around the entire Callaway properties. What we missed in cultivated gardens in December, we made up in solitude and some of the nicer features such as the lakes and the Ida Cason Chapel. Mr. Cason Callaway constructed these lovely gardens particularly known for their azaleas, off the proceeds of his mills.
It was a really nice long walk with several lake views included. Probably much more impressive in azalea season, but we enjoyed it even more barren in December.
We have to make a few dining comments. The Piedmont Room at the lodge was "okay." The fare wasn't anything particularly special but it sufficed as a meal and was tasty. The breakfast buffet at $32 per person (and the only option on the resort) was nice but expensive for what two older adults can eat at brekkie. We went the second night to a tiny gem of rural restaurant called Carriage and Horses run by a Lebanese immigrant who was so personable and served steaks cooked to perfection. Don't let the location fool you. Although it doesn't look like much from the outside, this place is awesome and has a great wine list!
For our second breakfast, we avoided the excessive charges and ate at a really nice local coffee shop, Unique Expressions. In addition to the sales of local craft items, they serve an "all day" breakfast (until at least 2pm), have beautiful handmade pastries and have nice coffee, paninis and such. And it was $20 for 2 people instead of $64! What's not to love?
Today we ventured closer to the site of our 9th anniversary on Sea Island, Georgia, but tried to pick a spot in-between Callaway and Sea Island for an overnight. On the way, we visited Ocmulgee Mounds National Monument. This is a hidden gem of a park run by the National Park service and chronicles the local Native Americans from the paleolithic period until driven out on their own personal trail of tears in the 19th century. The Creek Indians of local flavor have inhabited this area since way back there BC and are descendants of the Athabascans who crossed the Siberian regions so long ago the muskox forgot.
Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park has 17,000 years of human history. The Paleo-Indians first came to Middle Georgia during the Ice Age. The first people to this area were nomadic hunters and gathers who occupied this area for thousands of years. Around 1000 B.C.E they settled down into small villages growing crops of corn, beans, squash, and sunflowers. Around 900 C.E a new culture arrived here known as the Mississippians. They were a complex society with a government and religious system. They constructed mounds here for their elite members of society. The Mississippian culture thrived here until Europeans arrived around 1600. The Muscogee (Creek) Nation today called this land their ancestral homeland "where they first settled down". There are numerous mounds throughout the park thought to be there for primarily ceremonial or practical purposes. PreCovid you could visit INSIDE the earthlodge, but now it's all external. There are about 8 miles of hiking trails around the earthlodge, the great mound and the funeral mound amongst others. The railroad actually destroyed some of the mounds when built in the 1800s and actually bisected one of the larger ceremonial structures.
There are great walking trails through the mounds and beside the Ocmulgee River. They warned us about alligators on the trails, but in December, there were none.
From here it was off to our COVID conscious airbnb on the banks of the Oconee River in Uvalda, Georgia. Yep. We never heard of it either! But it is comfy and we are grateful. We highly recommend a visit to the Ocmulgee Mounds for anyone interested in Native AMerican culture and there is a nice visitor center which will likely reopen after the pandemic dies down.
When you are in doubt, be still, and wait; when doubt no longer exists for you, then go forward with courage.
So long as mists envelop you, be still; be still until the sunlight pours through and dispels the mists
-- as it surely will. Then act with courage."
- Chief White Eagle
Paul's Ponderings: We had a couple of great days at Callaway....particularly great weather versus home and we walked about 9-10 miles on our second day! I'd say the Piedmont dining room was "OK" but the place we went near Pine Mountain called "Carriage and Horses" was pretty darn great to be so rural! We had a Lebanese owner there with some excellent wine recommendations and a fine meal as part of it. The Indian mounds near Macon on the way to Uvalda were incredible....who knew? These are massive evidence of an ancient culture in this area and the monument area is nicely done. We spent the night in rural Georgia near Uvalde and finished up some excellent repurposed pasta from our experience a couple of nights ago with Luka in Atlanta. Salut!
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